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The EARTH Element

The EARTH Element

EARTH:  The fundamental arena of life where humans either exercise free will or experience karma, depending on your believe system.  Earth is Yellow and flat (I know the earth is round but we’re talking about the element, not the planet.) It is associated with Northeast, Southeast (F) , Southwest (M) and the period of time in between seasons. Earth energies manifest in the form of low growing gardens, clay pots and clay artwork, earth tones and sandalwood.  These are just some examples.  You can probably think of many others. 

EARTH is fed by FIRE: When fires burn ash is created which restores the soil.

EARTH compacts into METAL: Metals are mined from deep in the earth.

EARTH controls WATER:  Soil absorbs water and mountains and earthen dams block or redirect water flow.

EARTH is reduced by WOOD: Wood absorbs vital nutrients from the earth and pulls it upward through its roots.

Low-lying, flat areas are considered EARTH areas.  To create balance, you’ll want to enhance WATER and WOOD elements. You will also incorporate METAL to absorb some of the excess EARTH energy. You will want to downplay FIRE elements because you do not need any more EARTH created. 

Inside, EARTH represents the very core of the household, where families gather and healthy energies vibrate.  Think of ancient Roman architecture where the center of the house was a patio garden.  You can recreate this by painting the center, or common, area yellow or gold or adding clay pottery. You would also want to use a daylight/Full spectrum light bulb or soft light rather than Fluorescent lighting which gives off a blue tone. 

If you have a huge EARTH area inside your home, like a large great room or vaulted ceilings, plants (WOOD energy) can assist in balancing the EARTH energy. A small aquarium or WATER feature will add interest and life.

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The Five Key Elements of FENG SHUI

Feng Shui=Wind and Water

We’ve talked about Yin and Yang and the balance of powers. Think about them like the salt and pepper of life. Too much of either one can ruin a meal but a little of both enhances the dish.

The next step is understanding the FIVE KEY ELEMENTS.  To make it easier, I have created a printable map that you can save and use around your home. 

The five key elements are: EARTH, WATER, WOOD, FIRE, and METAL.

Feng Shui masters believe that each of these elements exists in all things, including people.  In fact, to borrow from Chinese numerology, even your time of birth determines which element dominates your personality. 

I will explore each element in depth in future posts.  In the meantime, print out the map and see if you can identify these elements around your home.  Do you have too much of one?  Are you missing any?

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Understanding the Flow of Energy through a Space

Cypress Gardens Swamp

Ever sit next to a beautifully still body of water and feel completely at peace?

How about a stagnant body of water? Chances are you would walk away, right?

Why?

Both are still but one feels alive and the other feels dead. The difference between the two is circulation.  In Feng Shui that’s called Wind.

Feng Shui literally means Wind and Water.  It is the combination of these forces on their surroundings that helps or hurts the flow of energy throughout a system.

 Think of wind as the ultimate symbol of energy in motion. Energy moves through everything but most of the time we cannot see it.  We can, however, feel it even if we don’t know what we are feeling.

Think about it.  Chances are you intuitively know if things feel alive or stagnant, peaceful or tense. This is all caused by energy flow. Feng Shui lets you identify the flow of this energy so that you can manipulate it’s direction and pace.  

Look around your environment.  If you opened all the door and windows, you could easily see the path of wind through the space.  Imagine where it goes and where it stops.  Does it race through and never stop?  Does it get caught anywhere?  Does it pass over areas completely? Does it enter and then get bounced around? This is a key awareness in Feng Shui.

For example, if you sit opposite the front door of an office building that opens and closes constantly, chances are you will feel all of the energies that come at you. Unless you have a strong barrier to absorb some of that energy, you may get sick often or get headaches.  You may also experience intense feelings of happiness and sadness because nothing softens the strong energies that come at you all of the time.

Applying this to your home, never put your restful space opposite a door, whether it be the bed, the sofa, the baby’s crib, etc.

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Yin and Yang – The Balance of Energies

Taijitu - Yin and Yang

At the root of Feng Shui is the Taijitu, also known as the Yin and Yang symbol.  In simplest terms, consider this symbol as representative of the balance of complementary energies.  Like all energy, it is in constant motion and interdependent on everything around itself.  

Yin, the black portion of the symbol represents the feminine aspect; Yang, the male aspect. Just as human life cannot exist without both, all things contain this balance within themselves. They are complementary. The black portion contains a white circle, the white contains a black circle.  This means that each exists within the other.  

Think about day and night.  Day cannot exist without night, night without day. Both are interdependent, cycling back and forth into each other in our ever changing universe.  As we move from winter into spring, daylight, Yang, increases and Yin decreases. This will change in June and again in December, an ever changing cycle of Yin and Yang.  

Understanding this balancing act allows us to interpret our surroundings from a new perspective of balance.  Think about the worst place you’ve ever visited.  Chances are it was too Yin or too Yang.   Desserts can be too sweet.  Rooms can be too dark or too bright, too open or too cluttered.  People can be overly angry or overly sad. Children can be hyperactive or underactive.   These are all applications of the Yin and Yang principles because all demonstrate things out of balance. 

To live a life of peace and harmony, health and prosperity, the key is to first find balance among all aspects.

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Feng Shui – A Primer

Beautifully balanced water lillies

Today I begin a new series of blog posts.  Feng Shui. After a twenty year fascination with this ancient art, I still consider myself a student. So, like any good student I will not pretend to be an expert.  Rather, I will share what I learn as we go.

First things first:  What is it?

Feng Shui, (pronounced Fung Shoy, not Fung Shway) is an ancient Chinese art of arranging one’s life in accordance with the forces of the universe.  We’ve all used the term “go with the flow.” Feng Shui teaches us to recognize the flow of energies as they exist all around us.  Once recognized, we can then assist those energies by enhancing or minimizing them.

Like many Eastern philosophies, Feng Shui has been Americanized to the point of rudeness.  Google Feng Shui and chances are you will get hundreds of websites that promise health, wealth and wisdom, but only after you enter your credit card number.

I will share the information free of charge.  All that I ask is that you honor this gift and pay it forward.

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